2008 Honda Civic Exterior lighting Problems
- Complaints
- 6about this part
- Share
- 1%of 916 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 65,000miles
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 6 complaints about the exterior lighting of the 2008 Honda Civic, 1% of the 916 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 65,000 miles. 1 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers.
Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“When I turned my headlights on, my dashlights go completely off, leaving me with no lights on the interior dashboard; fuel, speed, etc., all lights gone. When I turn my headlights off, the dashlights come back on. There was no accident and this car is way under mileage for its year; I worked at home.”
NHTSA complaint #10764002, filed 2015-09, 65,000 miles“I do not often drive a night but in recent months, when I did drive at night, I had significant difficulty seeing the highway. I thought well, it must be my age so I decided to buy ge nighthawk bulbs to replace the oem (sylvania DOT g0708 USA)bulbs. I bought the nighthawk bulbs because they are supposed to provide 30% greater light. Today (12/29/2010) I decided to remove the oem bulbs and install the ge nighthawk bulbs. …”
NHTSA complaint #10374191, filed 2010-12, 24,597 miles“This is not a complaint against the car I am driving, but I'm not sure how else to share this concern. The new headlights in cars are too bright. They hurt a person's eyes. Even people who aren't sensitive to light are complaining about having to look away from oncoming traffic because the lights are simply too bright. Not being able to keep an eye on oncoming traffic seems silly. Drivers need to be able to see what the oncoming car is doing, not be blinded by the light and forced to look away. …”
NHTSA complaint #10640048, filed 2014-09, 87,000 miles“This one happend to my 18yrs brother in law . He using my car to get to his school i dont know what happend he said brake didnt went through . No injury got a car crash thats all . But the sad thing is my insurance went up and the car history gonna be under my safety driver record . Dmv said im a good driver thats why they email me a safety driver number to renew my license no waiting in line . Maybe next renewal im not gonna get that treatment again”
NHTSA complaint #11437072, filed 2021-10“I purchased a 2008 Honda Civic ex coupe used. It was only a few years old. I read a lot of the complaints on this site about other 2008 hondas. I didn't see any complaints about brake lights. Ever since I bought my Honda, I noticed the the 3rd brake light has never worked. That's the light in the middle of the back window, which is a LED brake light. Even though I bought the car used, it was only a few years old when I bought it, and supposedly, LED lights last longer than the traditional brake lights. …”
NHTSA complaint #10869969, filed 2016-05Exterior lighting: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1 | 3% |
| 2024 | 1 | 1% |
| 2023 | 4 | 2% |
| 2022 | 2 | 0% |
| 2021 | 2 | 1% |
| 2020 | 2 | 1% |
| 2019 | 1 | 0% |
| 2018 | 3 | 0% |
| 2017 | 4 | 1% |
| 2016 | 30 | 3% |
| 2015 | 1 | 0% |
| 2014 | 7 | 2% |
| 2013 | 5 | 2% |
| 2012 | 10 | 2% |
| 2011 | 3 | 2% |
| 2010 | 5 | 1% |
| 2009 | 10 | 3% |
| 2008 | 6 | 1% |
| 2007 | 14 | 1% |
| 2006 | 23 | 2% |
| 2005 | 6 | 2% |
| 2004 | 12 | 3% |
| 2003 | 23 | 5% |
| 2002 | 53 | 8% |
| 2001 | 62 | 6% |
| 2000 | 9 | 3% |
| 1999 | 2 | 1% |
| 1998 | 5 | 1% |
| 1997 | 6 | 2% |
| 1996 | 13 | 4% |
| 1995 | 2 | 1% |
| 1994 | 1 | 1% |
| 1991 | 7 | 6% |
| 1990 | 4 | 4% |
| 1989 | 1 | 1% |
| 1986 | 4 | 11% |
Other parts of the 2008 Honda Civic
177 complaintsEngine
156 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
133 complaintsSuspension
99 complaintsBody and structure
85 complaintsEngine cooling
55 complaintsOther or unknown
54 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
52 complaintsElectrical system
51 complaintsBrakes
42 complaintsTires
30 complaintsVehicle speed control
29 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2008 Honda Civic
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology